Full disclosure, here. As a wee lad, G.I. Joe, was my jam. I had the toys, I watched the cartoon, I listened to the audio-stories, I had the bed sheets; you name it. It was even the book that I delved into during my first, short-lived attempt at following comics. My fandom did not continue into adulthood, but I have fond memories, none the less. However, I never thought too much of Transformers. I watched the cartoon, and I guess I enjoyed it (more than Voltron or He-Man and some of the others popular at the time). But I wasn’t in to the toys, I never contemplated putting an Autobots sticker on my car, and I flippin’ hate the new movies (I kinda like the second live-action G.I. Joe film). I won’t swear to it, but I think the only Transformers thing I ever read was a G.I. Joe VS Transformers comic set during World War II, from the early 2000s. I liked it, but it didn’t make me seek out more.
So, I had little interest in another crossover between these franchises. But, I’m a big fan of Tom Scioli and his mad bastard Jack Kirby-like insanity. When I heard he was working on the project, I knew I’d have to give it a look, even if it otherwise didn’t interest me. Scioli’s that good. Free Comic Book Day came along, and there was a preview issue. I took it home and may have even read it that night. Holy crap! Reading it was like plucking childhood memories right out of my head. It had the weird little kid logic I used to employ when playing. The same vaguely sick sense of wonder and horror that produced things like building huge structures, peppered with action figures, then knocking them down to see how all the bodies end up. The dialog, the plotline, the crazy ideas; Scioli and co-author John Barber are tapped into something. This is everything my weird little brain would have wanted the cartoon to be, everything it was when I was alone.
You can’t talk about a Scioli project and not talk about the art. With hyper-weird images sifted through Golden Age comic mentality, his work explodes with energy. And with his odd, slightly off, almost muted colors, reading the book sometimes feels like reading the backs of packages, or those full page ads you’d find in comic books from the 80s. Scioli’s work calls out for color, and it gets a ton here.
If you were a kid in the 80s, if you played with G.I. Joes or Transformers, if you’re in to weird comics, and if you like the idea of something way, way out there being dressed in a mainstream, commercial skin, read Transformers VS G.I. Joe. It’s the kind of thing I love, the kind of book I sit back and wonder, ‘how the hell did this get greenlit?’
Transformers VS G.I. Joe
Authors: Tom Scioli & John Barber
Artist: Tom Scioli
Publisher: IDW
ISBN: 978-1-63140-190-9
Regular readers will know that I love the pulps, and a lot of pulp inspired stuff. Movies like Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow and Raiders of the Lost Ark; comics like The Rocketeer and Hellboy; and of course adaptations of the originals, like Doc Savage, The Shadow, and the like. I also enjoy a good referential, alternate history story, like League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. So, The Chimera Brigade is right up my alley. Set in an alternate 1938, where Europe was profoundly changed by the arrival of what seem to be superheroes and villains after the Great War. Across the Continent, forces are gathering, spies are spying, and trouble is brewing.
Though the book in no way feels like League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, that is the most obvious reference when comparing it to something else. But instead of characters out of Victorian adventure novels, it features a different array of references (from Zamyatin’s We to Orwell’s Big Brother to Meyrink’s Golem), and a very different plot. I like the setting a lot and am very curious where the plot is going to take the various characters that have been introduced. The art isn’t amazing, but it’s not bad. Though not as good, in my opinion, it often reminds me of Mignola’s work on Hellboy.
Doing a quick bit of research, I found that this is the first of six volumes. I’m glad that it’s a story that has been completed. But not I’ve got to wait for it to get translated from the French and published Stateside, which sadly, might take a while. Because it is only the first of six volumes, this serves primarily as an introduction to the world and to the players, with only hints at the overall story. It has my attention; hopefully it can hold on to it for however long it takes to get the whole thing out.
The Chimera Brigade: Book One
Authors: Serge Lehman & Fabrice Colin
Artist: Gess
Publisher: Titan Comics
ISBN: 978-1-782-76099-3
In spite of some difficulties, I’m loving life right now. This week, I even managed to get in some good Dork living around the other stuff.
All You Need is Kill (aka Edge of Tomorrow): With a good amount of humor and plenty of balls to the wall action, this science fiction adventure film was a pleasant Summer Blockbuster. Unusually, the fast cutting and hand-held camera work was good. Tom Cruise, for all his wackiness off camera, is still a charming dude. And Emily Blunt is awesome. Truth be told, I wish she’d been the star of the film. She’s a close second in an Obi Wan Kenobi sort of way. The Groundhog Day storytelling works well and the overall vibe of the film is great. I think the ending could have been better. But it’s not bad. Well worth checking out. Give me more of these, and less Transformers/Avatar type movies. Give me movies where the effects help tell the story, not where they take the place of the story
. Girly: Super boring. Super British. It’s another movie about upper-class twits going crazy and being evil. There was a cinematic epidemic of this sort of thing in the 60s and 70s, and this is a lackluster entry. If Steed & Peele had shown up half way through, things might have gotten interesting. They did not.
On Monday night, I went with Ben and Nick to a place I’d never been to before, and frankly, probably never otherwise would have gone to. Hooters. So, here’s the thing. Every time anyone brings up Hooters, someone says ‘they’ve got great wings.’ I love wings. And it’s certainly not that I’m put off by beautiful women in skimpy outfits. But somehow (well, I think the "how" is obvious), Hooters has always had a certain something about it, in the cultural zeitgeist, that I found off-putting without ever actually going. So, we went and yes, the wings are great. I got all-you-can-eat, and made it worth the money, eating three plates. The best were the lemon & pepper. I want to go back and try all the other flavors I didn’t get to (there are like 10). That said, the place has a very, very weird vibe. It feels like an uncomfortable mix of family restaurant, sports bar, and strip club. No, the women aren’t stripping, but their outfits are so out of keeping with the rest of the place that you can’t help but notice. Whatever the case, I had a good time and ate some good food. And yeah, I’ll probably go back, because I want more wings. In stead of Hooters, though, they might want to call it Wedgies.
The Best Years of Our Lives: I found this film pleasantly honest. The lives of three WWII vets get complicated when the return home and try to pick up their old lives. One is haunted, one is wistful, an done is physically damaged. Each one faces his own set of demons, each one must find his own way, while forming a bond of friendship. It’s a good movie about men, and about soldiers. For a film made in 1946, I found it’s frank look at the damages of war to be refreshing and surprising. This would be an excellent capper to a WWII movie marathon. It is rather long for its type. It isn’t an epic, but it’s nearly three hours long. However, it’s not boring, and well worth the time.
What’s a little apocalyptic downpour? Wednesday night, we went to the Alamo, and were treated to a massive thunderstorm with out Spaghetti Western. About 20 minutes from the end, the power went out for a bit, giving folks a break to get up and walk around. But all was well, and the show went on.
For a Few Dollars More: Dare I say it? Is this the best of the Man With No Name trilogy? I kind of think it is. Everything works here. It’s beautiful. It’s funny. It’s violent. The music is flippin’ amazing. Lee Van Cleef is so danged good. And that finale? Awesome. Straight-up awesome. I saw these films when I was a boy of maybe 12 or 13, and I didn’t really get them. Though I knew I was seeing something different from the ‘black hat-white hat,’ John Wayne strutting Westerns I’d disliked on Saturday afternoon TV, I didn’t get what I was seeing. A quarter century later, and I get it. Darned fine stuff.
The Cranes are Flying: Russia. World War II. Yup, this film is super depressing. However, it’s also beautifully shot and filled with uplifting moments and relatable characters. With a strong anti-war message, and a weirdly non-political (at least, non-Communist VS Capitalist) spirit, I’m not surprised that this went on to international success when it came out. The camera work alone is more than worth the price of admission. Forget Alfonso Cuaron’s gimmicky long-shots. The camera here is an intimate partner of the actor in a way I’ve rarely seen.
The Horror of Party Beach: Ultra-campy, and a ton of fun, this movie about a bunch of kids (played by very adult actors) having fun in the sun while being menaced by terrible looking fish-creatures (who are really Zombies!) this is a must see. The MST3K boys took their turn at it, but honestly, it’s just as much fun without ‘em. If you’re in the mood to watch a stupid movie with friends, this is a great choice. Check it out. And stay groovy!
The Curse of the Living Corpse: Roy Scheider and Candace Hilligoss in a movie together? OK. Sign me up! Unfortunately, that’s the best part of the movie, right there. No, not them in the film, but that they were cast in the film. The film is stupid. But worse, it’s boring. Other than some laughably bad acting, there’s nothing to see here. Move along. Move along.
Saturday morning, I finished Authority, the second book in the Southern Reach trilogy. Pretty darned good. Can’t wait ‘til the third volume comes out in September. Saturday afternoon, even though I knew I wasn’t going to make it to the book club, I finished off volume 1 of Preacher (thank goodness, I didn’t have to suffer through volume 2). I know. People love it. But I am not one of those folks. This was my second try reading it, and while the first time (about 10 years ago) I found it boring and didn’t finish the trade, this time around I outright hated it. The further in I read, the more I hated almost everything about it. I won’t be writing an extended review, so I’ll just say here that I thought the dialog seemed to have been written by a 13 year old boy trying his little heart out to be shocking. The characters are all cardboard. And the plot twists range from obvious to stupid. I’ve heard the series gets better as it goes. But I don’t care. I got the same gut-level hate feeling I got from Saga, and like Saga, have to stare at the people telling me it’s great with a slack-jawed, dumbfounded look. There’s obviously something I’m missing, and nobody has been able to explain to me what it is.
Colour From the Dark: Another adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft’s The Color Out of Space. It’s not too bad. Fairly well produced (though the footage looks made for TV, the editing and composition are more ‘theatrical’), with some good creepy bits, it does fall a bit too heavy onto the Good VS Evil fallacy that is so wrong with Lovecraft. The actors are a mixed bag. And considering that it is supposed to take place in WWII era Italy, the fact that there are so many different accents is a bit weird. Not nearly as good as Die Farbe, it’s still worth a watch, and better than many adaptations of the author’s work.
Riddick: I know, I know. I enjoy these Riddick movies. I liked Pitch Black a lot. I thought Chronicles of Riddick, for all its many faults, was a lot of fun. I enjoyed Dark Fury, the animated short bridge film between the first two. And I like this one. This third feature is more in keeping with the original, and not just because the latter part of the film is something of a carbon copy of the first, but because it feels like it’s set more in an Alien type universe, as opposed to a Star Wars type universe (as Chronicles of Riddick did). I really like the first half hour, where he’s kind of Robinson Crusoe on a desert world. Once the Mercs show up, it’s not as good, but still watchable. I’ve said this of several films in the last couple of years, but this is the sort of thing that should be a dime a dozen these days. Mid-level, entertaining science fiction films. Yes, I’d love for there to be great science fiction films. But in between the great ones, I want to see a dozen or so of these more pulpy efforts. This movie also reminds me that there’s no valid reason for not doing a live action Warhammer 40,000 film.
Oblivion: My second viewing of this film, and darn it, I just really like it. Absolutely, many of the ideas, if not all, are lifted from other science fiction films and books. But so what? My problem isn’t with lifting ideas, it’s with using them poorly, and this film isn’t guilty of that. The movie is a feast for the eyes and the ears, with stunning visuals, gorgeous location shooting, and an excellent semi-electronica score. Like Moon before it, Oblivion raids sci-fi of the 60s and 70s, and comes out with some very watchable stuff.
Chef: This is definitely what the internet has termed ‘food porn.’ But it’s also a Capra-like comedy about a guy who falls on hard times, then learns valuable lessons about life and fatherhood (with WAY more swearing than Capra). On occasion, it does stretch credibility (like, everyone talks about needing money, but they all seem to have enough to do whatever they want at any given time, including quitting good jobs with no prospects…and I’m not just talking about El Jefe). And the very end? OK, that seemed silly. However, the movie has a great deal of heart, and the cast sells the familiarity of close friends. In fact, the scenes between Favreau, Leguizamo, and Cannavale feel more true to what men are like without women around than most movies manage. Like The Big Night, this movie makes you want to do a serious restaurant crawl. I wanted to reach into the screen and eat some of everything. I never had any interest in going to Miami, New Orleans, or Texas before, but suddenly the idea of a food tour is sounding amazing.
I’m still listening to a bunch of Black Mountain. I tapped into that 70s rock/metal vibe and can’t seem to shake it. I may have to load up some Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, and Blu Oyster Cult this week to keep the train rolling.
I am a sucker for alternate timelines/histories. No, I couldn’t really get into the Turtledove or Webber books, but still… Anyway, when I saw the Uber trade hit the store shelf, I was intrigued. It proposes a world where, in the final moments of the World War II, just before the fall of Berlin, German scientists developed a super-soldier serum, creating giant, super-powered Nazi soldiers who turned the tide back upon the Allies, destroying a massive chunk of the Soviet army and no few Americans and Brits. In the wake of this disaster, an Ally spy manages to smuggle out a sample of the serum, giving the Allies a fighting chance against these new Ubermensch. I love all of that. Yes. ‘This comic is going to be great,’ was my thought.
Well, my brain was wrong, and it didn’t take me long to realize it. Let me start at the good points. The ideas presented are really, really cool. I like the hints of what the serum is, where it came from, and what it might do. I like the twists on the history, and the people involved. And I like the plot progression and where the story seems to be going. That stuff is all great. Now the bad; and here I’m going to start with the least offensive. The artwork by Caanan White is inconsistent, to say the least. Some images are beautiful or terrible, appropriately. But others are muddied and jumbled. Many of the characters become difficult to distinguish, especially the women, who seem to be almost universally blonde, with the same face. At one point in the series, one becomes a redhead, and I’m guessing it was in response to readers not knowing who was the German super-soldier and who was the British spy. And it seems like entirely too much time was devoted to drawing blood and gore. The silly amounts of blood and guts flying around various pages started making the whole thing look like something a teenager would draw in an attempt to be ‘shocking.’ It's certainly not so bad that I wouldn't have forgiven it, had it been accompanied by good writing. Which then brings me to the worst part of the book, the writing. While the plot progression is fine, the nitty-gritty of dialog and captions seems to have been written by a rank amateur. That, along with the art, made the whole thing look and sound like something you’d maybe (I stress maybe) pick up in an artists’ ally at a comic convention, where you’re more likely to be somewhat forgiving of a lack of polish, because it’s all self-published and often doesn’t have the benefit of a proper editor. This book does not have that excuse, and author Kieron Gillen isn’t some 17 year old kid who shows some promise. He’s a professional journalist, and has more than a decade of comic writing experience behind him. He has no excuse.
To sum up, Uber is a great idea for a comic series (and would make a solid background for a tabletop roleplaying game). Sadly, this is not that comic series. The ideas are strong, but the book is…well, it’s crap. It’s serious crap. It was actually kind of difficult to slog through, because the writing is that bad. I’ve now read two samples of Gillen’s work (I suffered through a couple issues of Invincible Iron Man), and have to say his name is going on my ‘to avoid’ list of writers, right next to Chris Claremont. While I don't love Caanan White's art in this book, he's certainly got skill, and I'll be curious to see where his career takes him. Hopefully to working with better writers.
So, it’s been another year and Marvel/Disney keeps amping things up. The second Captain America just came out. Guardians of the Galaxy appears to be a real thing that is happening. I’ve seen the trailer. I don’t think it’s a hoax. They keep saying Ant-Man is really happening. And now I’m hearing a lot of rumor around Dr. Strange (come on, Mads Mikkelsen!) and a Black Widow spin-off. Madness. There’s also talk of a post WWII series about Agent Carter, which I think could be great (along with several NetFlix series that are supposed to build up to The Defenders…crazy). A year on, and I wanted to return to my hopes for Marvel films of the future. Especially with talk of their cinematic universe being mapped out to 2028 or some such. Here are some more of the Marvel characters I want to see them get serious about. If they can do Guardians of the Galaxy, they can do anything. And yes, I would absolutely pay money to see a Squirrel Girl movie.
5. Misty Knight & Colleen Wing, The Daughters of the Dragon: This pair of martial arts wielding detectives could be a great deal of fun to watch. My inclination would be to set this in the 1970s, but realistically I’m sure it would have to play more contemporary. Perhaps this could link in to the proposed NetFlix series centered around the Defenders. It seems more ‘ground level,’ less over the top super-power action.
4. Nova: It looks like the Nova Corps is going to be showing up in Guardians of the Galaxy, which I’m cool with. They’re basically like the Green Lantern Corps, except that DC/WB managed to screw that up royally like they do with everything other than Batman. So, here’s hoping Guardians gets a cosmic spin-off. This is the side of the Marvel Universe I most want to see explored. Let’s see Asgardians and Kree fighting, Nova Corps keeping the peace, and a Herald of Galactus (how about Nova?). See also; The Space Knights.
3. MODOK: Not just because he was born in my home town, I think MODOK needs a movie. This is in part because I like A.I.M., and think they should show up in the films, and because the Marvel movies need a couple big, long term villains. Hydra might be settling in to be one, but they need more recurring villains, and MODOK could be a really good fit.
2. Captain Marvel (either Monica Rambeau or Carol Danvers): A running theme in discussion of comic book movies is DC’s inability to pull its head out of its own butt. And one of the primary sources of this anatomical difficulty is their handling of women generally, and Wonder Woman specifically. There have been several people to take the title of Captain Marvel, but Rambeau and Danvers seem the most likely choices. I personally lean toward Rambeau. Captain Marvel could be the Wonder Woman movie DC can't figure out how to make.
1. Beta Ray Bill: A monster of science, designed to save a civilization, Beta Ray Bill and Thor butt heads, only to become brothers in arms. Beta Ray even models his costume on the Asgardian, and at one point proved himself worthy of wielding Thor’s Hammer.
There are, of course, countless other characters I’d love to see, story arcs that could be adapted. How about a variation of Marvels? Film right issues would mean several of that time spanning story’s events would have to be altered, but it could make for a powerful film if done right. What do they have planned? I don’t know. But the future of Marvel movies is bright. Very bright.
Fans of Hollywood’s Golden Age will be familiar with Hedy Lamarr. I first saw her opposite Charles Boyer in Algiers, and like most men do upon encountering her, fell in love. Sadly, I was too young (10?), and she had long since retired (and was about 70). It would never have worked. As the years went on, I remained vaguely aware of her, seeing her in films too rarely as I built up my experience in classic cinema. But I did note her passing with a bit of appropriate regret. I knew, in the vaguest way, that she’d done some interesting stuff outside of acting. I knew there was some WWII espionage or something, but I didn’t know the details. And in spite of my love of orchestral music, I will admit, I had never heard of George Antheil. Not once. So this book, chronicling the unlikely meeting and collaboration of one of the most beautiful women to ever grace the silver screen, and the self proclaimed Bad Boy of Music, was enlightening, to say the very least. It's a celebration of two wild lives and their world changing collaboration.
This is not a biography of Lamarr or Antheil, though it does provide a good deal of biographical information for context. Author Richard Rhodes jumps between two very different lives that almost seemed destined to cross paths, showing how each person grew, gaining knowledge and experience that would be invaluable when combined. Lamarr grew up in Austria, the child of a well off family, in the years after the Great War. Antheil traveled to Europe, part of that post War Paris community of American artists. He had dreams of grandiosity, of changing the way music was made. She had her eyes on the theater. And all the while, War was brewing again.
Though not written as a novel, one could very easily see this being turned into a film. The backdrop of Europe in those heady days between wars, two charismatic young people, danger and secrets. Fascinating stuff. Hedy’s first marriage, to an arms manufacturer, exposes her to some interesting technologies. And her technical inclinations are awakened. Antheil marries, too, but faces money woes. The two almost meet, even know some of the same people. But it wasn’t to be, yet. Of course, they do eventually meet, Antheil ‘selling out’ by doing movie scores, Lamarr hitting it big in Hollywood. And together they would invent a technology that would go on, eventually, to shape the modern world.
The book is an entertaining and informative read, but at the end, I was left a bit disappointed. I think what it functions best as is a jumping off point for finding out more about the two central figures. Hedy Lamarr remains a largely mysterious figure, with specific events being delineated, while little of her heart makes it onto the pages. Perhaps the recent biography from Stephen Michael Shearer will accomplish that. Whereas Antheil comes off as kind of a buffoon. Throughout the book, it felt like the author was trying to cover for a friend; like he knew Antheil kind of a jackass, but he wanted us to focus on his good traits. However, he dropped enough information about his bad behavior that the attempts to gloss over them ring false. It does make me want to read Antheil’s own words, his biography Bad Boy of Music (yeah, seriously). And reading this book prompted me to pick up a CD of his work, which I’ve enjoyed thoroughly.
I think that both George Antheil and Hedy Lamarr are far more interesting characters than this book manages to capture. However the story of their invention is presented well. It’s a quick read, too. Rhodes doesn’t mess about. And as I said, it’s a good starting point for further reading. More on Paris in the between war years, more on Hollywood’s Golden Age, more on Antheil’s futurist music, more on the technological advancements of World War II. The best books make you want to read more, to learn more. With that in mind, Hedy’s Folly gets my recommendation.
Hedy’s Folly
Author: Richard Rhodes
Publisher: Doubleday
ISBN: 978-0-385-53438-3
Sunday started the week off right, with a morning movie, a trip to a comic shop, and an early evening movie. Brad, Ben, and I made a day of it, finally checking out the Angelica theater that has recently been built in a newly developing town center ten or fifteen minutes from my place. The area has a Reston Town Center kind of vibe. Nice, lots of shops, lots of open spaces, and lots of families. The weirdest Target I’ve ever been to (it rests on top of a parking garage…?).
The Wolverine: Is it great? No. Is it better than most of the X-Men movies? Yeah. This movie did what Wolverine Origins should have done, focusing less on mutant battles, and more on character and story. Unfortunately, the action it did feature was kinda awful. Except for the train-top fight, which I enjoyed, I found all the battles and action sequences in the film extremely dull. Not as dull as the battles in Man of Steel, but that film kind of set the gold standard for fights that WILL NOT STOP.
Only God Forgives: If you thought Drive was a bit slow, a bit too quiet, a bit too violent, then you should probably stay way away from this film. Much more in tone like Valhalla Rising, with long sequences of not talking punctuated with sudden bursts of ultra-violence. Although, when you look at it, there isn’t actually much onscreen violence, considering how oppressive it feels. Most viewers are just not going to respond to this movie. But if you enjoy stuff like Lost Highway, Valhalla Rising, Beyond the Black Rainbow, etc. you might want to give it a go.
Doctor Who: Battlefield: The Doctor runs into Arthurian myth in this not entirely bad late story. I’m finding it hard to push through these Sylvester McCoy tales, and I completely understand why the show was on its last legs.
Godzilla, Mothra, and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All Out Attack: “It’s like a monster convention!” This movie is weird. It pretty much ignores 50 years of Godzilla films, with only the first one actually having happened. And it re-writes the monsters. Here, Ghidorah is a guardian monster, not the ultimate alien foe. The story, as is so often the case, revolves around a plucky reporter trying to follow the action. And of course, the military is helpless. The mix of CGI and new filming techniques make the film look cheaper and more TV-like. I liked a lot of the stuff about the people on the ground, but the actual monster action was less impressive. I did find Chiharu Niiyama particularly charming as the reporter. I might have been a little happier if they’d cut back on the military stuff and play up her role a bit more.
And my vacation started on Friday evening. I have a lot to do in the next week, including a good deal of serious time wasting.
Brotherhood of the Wolf: This movie is total kitchen sink entertainment. What genre is it? What genre isn’t it? It’s not a ‘teen sex-comedy.’ Otherwise, I think it fits into nearly anything you can think of. Historic mystery, martial-arts fantasy, buddy cop, religious/political conspiracy, costume drama, western, horror, etc. The set-up is simple. A creature is killing people in the French countryside during the mid 18th century. A war hero and his Acadian blood-brother ride in to town to investigate. Things get crazy. Is it a wolf? Is it a monster? Is it something else entirely? Secrets and lies, politics and religion, lust and honor. Crazy stylized action scenes, beautiful Hammer-style production design, and a crazy plot progression make for some entertaining viewing.
Space: Above and Beyond: This show had big problems. The main cast of characters are uninteresting clichés (though they get better as time goes on), the effects suck, the production looks cheap most of the time, and the A.I. rebel subplot is handled surprisingly poorly. But, the WWII vibe and character growth do help. The building storyline and sometimes heart breaking moments, along with the authentic feeling military jargon and behavior make it stand out. A lot of sci-fi shows have action/war themes. Few make it feel ‘real.’ Though on a totally different quality ballpark, this reminded me a great deal of Band of Brothers, or even The Big Red One. I would love to see someone re-launch the show today. Better technology and technique, as well as less devotion to the episodic nature of TV that was still fairly firm in the 90s could make up for a lot. Drop or substantially alter the A.I. business (they’re cartoonishly stupid villains with little or no rhyme or reason, and inconstancies that are unforgivable). In the post-Battlestar reboot landscape, with our generation’s own long term military conflicts hanging over our heads, a show like Space: Above and Beyond, handled with more care and more (or better used) money could be an effective vehicle for storytelling. Sci-fi fans should probably watch this show, but know it’s uneven and gets off to a very, very shaky start. The second half is a marked improvement, and it is sad that the show did not come back for another season, as I think there was a good deal of potential. Who knows, maybe someone will Ronald D. Moore it one of these days.
More reading. More music. Worked on a script. Not much accomplished. You know, another week in the life. Dork life!
